Teenager Killed in Bahrain amid High Tension

A Bahraini teenager was killed when he was struck by a police car in a Manama suburb where a protest was underway, an opposition group said Saturday, but officials said he died accidentally.

Two other people were wounded in the incident, al-Wefaq, the largest Shiite opposition group in Bahrain, said in a statement.

Ali Yussef Baddah, 16, was killed on the spot when a police car struck him in the al-Jufair suburb after midnight on Friday, the group said, adding that police was out on the streets to break up a protest.

A police official quoted by the state run news agency said that the death was an accident, adding that the driver of the police car lost control of the vehicle and skidded, killing the boy.

Tension remains high in Bahrain where the Sunni monarchy earlier this year crushed pro-democracy protests, spearheaded by the majority Shiites, with the help of troops from other Gulf States, such as Saudi Arabia.

Twenty-four people died during the month-long crackdown, according to official figures from Manama. The opposition says 40 people were killed.

An independent commission is due to release Wednesday a report on the violence.